Back to Annual Meeting

Back to Annual Meeting

APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Beth E. Rivin, MD, MPH, School of Law, The University of Washington and Uplift International, 4010 Stone Way North, Suite 200, Seattle, WA 98103, 206-985-9888, brivin@u.washington.edu

Indonesia's commitment to improving child health relies on a robust civil society with institutions that actively advocate to policymakers at the local, regional and national levels. Uplift International is promoting child health and rights through its Health and Human Rights Project in Indonesia. Uplift International, a Seattle-based NGO with strong links to the University of Washington, is partnered with the oldest, largest and most respected health professional organization in Indonesia, The Indonesian Doctors Association (IDI). The model project focuses on professional and institutional capacity building and collaboration with Law, first among the IDI members and then with other health professional organizations, to promote health and health equity through rights-based advocacy. The program kick-off was a national Conference on Health and Human Rights in 2003 which was attended by approximately two hundred participants included scholars, activists, representatives from international and local health and legal organizations and representatives of the Government of Indonesia. Since the conference, the Health and Human Rights Project activities have focused on educating doctors and medical students in biomedical ethics, human rights, social justice and advocacy. Other program activities focus on educating lawyers and law students about health impacts of human rights abuses, forensic evidence, and distributive justice. Informed professionals can advocate through their professional associations for improved health and social justice, especially the most vulnerable. We have begun to see early successes, such as the President of IDI speaking to Parliament about health rights for all Indonesians.

Learning Objectives:

1.understand advocacy as a tool for health professionals to use in promoting child health and human rights
• understand the role of professional associations as civil society actors that can promote child health and child rights
• understand the necessity of health professionals to collaborate with law professionals to improve child health and rights

Keywords: Child/Adolescent, Advocacy

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation